Strong performance drives autumn holiday visitor growth

Continued growth in
holiday arrivals from Australia, USA and Germany and a
strong rebound from Japan have driven a solid autumn, with
total holiday arrivals up 12.8 per cent for the month of
May.

“USA and Germany were stellar performers over
summer and both have maintained significant growth across
the shoulder season (USA holiday arrivals up 29.9 per cent
and Germany up 19.4 per cent in May), delivering ongoing
economic benefit to New Zealand and the industry as we head
into the winter ski season,” says Tourism New Zealand’s
General Manager Corporate Affairs Chris Roberts.

Total arrivals for the year-ending May were up 5.9 per
cent, with most of that growth coming from additional
holidaymakers – with annual holiday arrivals up 8.9 per
cent.

The growth in arrivals was seen across key
offshore markets, with significant holiday arrival growth
from Japan up 73.9 per cent, and India, which is now in its
peak travel season, up 31.1 per cent.

“This is the
first growth we have seen from Japan in a number of months
and is the result of a coordinated effort to drive shoulder
season arrivals with Air New Zealand. It is really pleasing
to see the additional capacity on the route and our own
concerted marketing activity drive the growth we saw in
May.

“Looking at the emerging India market, May is
a traditional holiday period as Indian visitors escape the
hot Indian summer, and the growth we have seen this year
reinforces the potential we see from this market and
supports our increased activity to drive arrivals.”

Holiday arrivals grew across Asia with Singapore up 61.5
per cent, Malaysia up 19.2 per cent, Korea up 22.5 per cent
and Hong Kong up 53.6 per cent, while arrivals from China in
May were relatively flat with a 1.3 per cent increase.

“For China we are continuing to see a positive change
in the visitor mix, with most of the growth coming from
independent travellers, rather than short stay group tours.
This is reflected by the increased length of stay for
Chinese holiday visitors during May – up by more than 20
per cent year-on-year, to an average of 6.6 days.”

Holiday visitors from New Zealand’s largest market
Australia were up a 5.9 per cent for the month, resulting in
7.4 per cent growth for the year ending May.

“May
is normally a quieter travel period from Australia as
visitors wait to visit during the winter ski season so this
growth exceeds expectations and is fantastic to see.

“Just last week our work to promote a winter holiday
was lifted to a new level with Australia’s highest rating
morning show Sunrise broadcast live from Queenstown,
showcasing the range of winter activities to its 1.7 million
viewers,” says Chris.

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